This section provides background information related to the present disclosure which is not necessarily prior art.
The primary obstacle to the widespread utilization of crystalline covalent inorganic thin film photovoltaics is the high cost of the semiconductor synthesis and processing. Many currently available methods of forming crystalline semiconductors are energy intensive, take long periods for processing, and can be quite expensive. For example, conventional processing methods often involve crystallizing an amorphous semiconductor material, such as an amorphous silicon layer, by heat or laser annealing to generate the desired crystallinity. Further, in certain other methods of forming crystalline semiconductor materials, in order to provide the desired morphology for the crystalline material, complex physical and/or chemical templating agents are used. Hence, methods for forming crystalline semiconductor materials that are faster, less expensive, and less energy intensive, while having streamlined control over morphology would be desirable. Additionally, it would be highly desirable to have devices and methods that provide the ability to form one or more epitaxial layers of the semiconductor material over a substrate.